Editorial: Timing right for manufacturing revival in Western Massachusetts

File photo by John Suchocki / The RepublicanEdward T. Leyden, president of Ben Franklin Design and Manufacturing in Agawam, is shown with parts his company makes for the nuclear power industry.

After decades of decline, Western Massachusetts manufacturing is on the cusp of a revival – thanks to a new public-private collaboration, which recognizes that the commonwealth must make things again to survive and thrive in the 21st century economy.

It’s a revival that will require building upon the region’s strong manufacturing tradition – one that dates back to the days of the Springfield Armory – while fueling innovation and persuading a new generation of workers that their father’s factory is no more.

“There are so many people who consider precision manufacturing a dirty, dying smokestack business,” said Edward T. Leyden, president of the aptly named Ben Franklin Design and Manufacturing in Agawam. That’s not the case today, however, where computers and robots are part and parcel of the factory floor.

Leyden, who was named co-chairman of the newly formed Massachusetts Advanced Manufacturing Collaborative by Gov. Deval L. Patrick at a recent event at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, is encouraged by the state’s renewed commitment to reclaim its manufacturing heritage. “I believe the state is serious about this industry,” Leyden said, noting that collaborative has five main goals: promoting manufacturing as a growing industry and an attractive career path, work force training, technical assistance and innovation, addressing the cost of doing business in Massachusetts and improving manufacturers’ access to capital.

Academics are beginning to lend their knowledge and support to meet the challenge of reviving manufacturing. MIT and universities nationwide, spurred by a $500 million White House initiative, are working to tap American innovation to boost manufacturing. Several innovations have already sprung form MIT labs including an enterprise that makes lithium-based batteries for hybrid and electric cars.

While all this energy is percolating, there are some encouraging signs that manufacturing is already experiencing a revival. Springfield gunmaker Smith & Wesson in Springfield, for example, is adding more than 200 workers to its production line to its high-tech factory. And a new report from the University of Massachusetts Donahue Institute proclaims: “Manufacturing is back – and hiring.”

According to the UMass report, the state advertised 72,996 job openings in the manufacturing sector in 2011, second only to the health care sector.

In his State of the Union address, President Obama, buoyed by the resurgence of U.S. auto industry, outlined an agenda that includes a commitment to help American manufacturers compete with foreign factories. He called for tax incentives for American manufacturers operating abroad to bring jobs home to Americans who need them. The Bay State – and indeed the nation – cannot sit idly by and let China become the world’s manufacturer.

State and national policies – and funding – are necessary to restore American manufacturing to the dominance it once enjoyed.